Over the past 30 years, adolescents’ physical and mental health has steadily declined, mirroring poorer fitness, reduced sleep, more sedentary lifestyles (driven largely by screen use), and diets increasingly dominated by ultra-processed and fast foods. This trend is shaped by broader factors such as repeated health, social, and political crises, climate change, and is further amplified by social and regional inequalities.

Health policies have often struggled to anticipate or address adolescents’ specific needs. Yet, there are encouraging signs: deaths from accidents and suicides have fallen, smoking, drug use, and early pregnancies have decreased, while sports participation and youth engagement in climate issues have grown. 

To reverse negative health trends and prevent the early onset of chronic diseases, an adolescent-centered strategy is urgently needed—one designed with young people themselves and aligned with broader child health policies. This strategy should be holistic and cross-sectoral, taking into account the full rhythm of adolescents’ daily lives and creating supportive environments for their well-being, with schools, families, leisure activities, and above all adolescents themselves actively involved